A Brother To Me
by lupyne
Summary: This story is undergoing construction. Should you decide to enter, watch out for falling objects. ...In other words, this is an old fic, so there's bad writing inside
1. The Summer Festival

A Brother To Me

Disclaimer : I do not own Hamtaro and all the characters in it.

A/N: This is a story focusing on Stan and Sandy. If it comes out weird (as in missing punctuations and messed-up text) please tell me. Flames will be tossed to the fireplace. If you don't like my story, you can always say it politely and state why you don't like it or something like that.

Also note, my Hamtaro history isn't good, so if there are some mistakes, forgive me.

-----------------------------------------

**_CHAPTER ONE : The Summer Festival_**

"OK, as we all know, Elder Ham is holding a Summer Festival again this Sunday. Therefore, we got to prepare our performances. As Sandy had kindly informed us just now, the girls will be doing a ribbon-twirling-gymnastic-thingy (again). That leaves us guys. What are our plans?" Boss said.

It was another usual day in the Clubhouse. The Clubhouse basically consists of three main sections: one at the lower area where the Ham-Hams usually hang out; one at the mid-section where the beds are (Snoozer usually sleeps here); and one at the highest point where Maxwell once used as his office when he was making a newspaper called _Ham-Ham Times. _Currently, the girls are at the mid-section and the boys at the lower section.

"Well, I'm already working on something," Maxwell said.

"Oh really? What's that?"

"Can't tell you, it's a secret," he teased. He gave a wink to Bijou without the others noticing.

"Well then, that leaves me, Hamtaro, Oxnard, Howdy -" Boss began, but was interrupted by Howdy.

"Forget it, Boss, me and Dexter are planning something special!" Howdy said while glancing over at Pashmina.

"Okay then! It's me, Hamtaro, Oxnard, Cappy, Panda… just us five, then?" Boss said.

"I should think so!" Hamtaro said cheerfully.

"So, what are we gonna do?"

"A play! A play is always fun! But I really don't want to be the props guy again…" Hamtaro said mournfully.

"Sorry about last time, Hamtaro, but you were late. We kinda made the entire script already when you came in," Maxwell explained.

"Yeah, but I'm here now! All of us are here… nobody's going to be left out this time!" Hamataro said.

----

The girls continued chatting away among themselves at the mid-section of the Clubhouse, occasionally giggling while the boys worked on their script. Even Howdy, Dexter and Maxwell helped out. It wasn't until when the script was completed when the door opened, revealing a male tiger-striped hamster. He began scooting towards the girls.

"Hey sis!" he greeted Sandy before heading towards Pashmina and Bijou. "Sorry to keep you girls waiting, but Noel left home late. He's going away on a trip for four days, but not before leaving enough supplies in my cage to last me till he comes back. Because of that, I'm pleased to tell you that I have 96 hours free to spend with you lovely ladies!"

"Um… that eez very nice, Stan, but if you don't mind, we girls was just going to practice for the festival," Bijou said.

"Ah, the summer festival. You sure none of you lovely ladies would like to perform with me?"

"No, Mr. Flirt, now go away. The boys were working on their script, and if you don't go now to tell them that you exist, they'll forget about you and you won't have a part in their play," Sandy said before pushing Stan away to the boys.

"Hahaha, sis, not a chance will they forget about me that easily!"

_Five minutes later…_

"No way… you actually forgot about me!"

"Yeah… it's kind of weird, huh? Not a single of us remembered of you. The script is already finished… but you can be the props boy though, like Hamtaro was last time before we even met you," Boss said.

"That's totally uncool, dudes! How could you forget about me?" Stan whined.

"Well, at least we remembered… to forget about you! Ahahaha, Howdy, yer a genius!" Howdy laughed to himself.

"Lame-o! I don't want to be a props boy… Looks like I have to perform… by myself?"

---

Stan sat on his favourite spot at the top of the Clubhouse. He looked down at the girls, who were practicing. The boys were having a little argument about the script. He saw Maxwell walking towards the girls before pulling Bijou away to discuss something. Howdy and Dexter were talking to each other while occasionally glancing at Pashmina.

For perhaps the first time ever, he felt lonely and bored. He can't just walk up to the girls and start a conversation… they were too absorbed in their ribbon-dance. He saw no reason to get involved with the boys' play as well. He laid down on a big cushion and began shaking one of his maracas with a paw to a rhythmic beat.

"Hamha!"

Stan nearly fell out of the cushion.

"H-Hamtaro! Don't scare me like that!"

"Sorry Stan! I just wanted to check on you."

"Me? What's wrong with me?"

"You seem… down!"

"How can he be down when he's so high up there? Hahahaha!" Howdy yelled from below.

"Don't listen to him, Stan, we are all actually worried about you!"

"There's nothing to be worried about, Hamta-"

"Maybe I should give up my role in the play so you can have it and-"

"Thanks, Hamtaro, but no thanks. Wanna know a secret? _When you're performing solo, you will get more attention._ All the Ham-ladies shall adore me in no time! Now run along… go practice or something."

"Oh! I didn't think of it that way! Can I perform solo with you then, Stan?"

"Uh… no… then it wouldn't be solo anymore. Besides, you already have a role in the play."

"Right! And don't worry! I will tell all the girls to adore you during your performance. Bye Stan!" Hamtaro ran down the stairs to rejoin his group.

_Heh…_ Stan thought. _Innocent and still so young…_ _What am I going to do during the festival? I need something that will steal the hearts of every female audience… I just can't think here, with all the noise. I need to get out…_

Stan got up and made for the exit. He accidentally bumped into Maxwell on the way out. He did not go far from the Clubhouse, but merely climbed up a tree not far away. He then heard some rustling noise from below. Looking down, he saw Maxwell apparently rummaging around a bush. Bijou then came out of nowhere.

_Speaking of Maxwell and Bijou… they were acting a little weird today…_

"Well, Maxwell, what eez it that you want to tell me? We're alone now…"

"Uh… well, Bijou…"

"Out with it, Maxwell,"

"I… I am going to say it now then!"

"Hurry already, the girls are waiting for me."

"Bijou… I… actually… I love you. From the first day I met you, I knew there was something special… I just didn't know it was love…"

Bijou gasped. "Oh… Maxwell… I didn't know…"

Bijou then lunged and hugged Maxwell. "I always felt the same… I wanted to tell you, but I was afraid you'd reject me…"

"Wow, that's great! I always thought you were in love with Hamtaro…"

Bijou turned really red at this. "He… he is only a friend."

Both of them then walked into the Clubhouse hand-in-hand. Stan followed quickly.

---

"All for one and one for all!" Boss, Hamtaro and Oxnard yelled together. Apparently, it was line from their play. Stan saw the girls, save Sandy, practicing their dance. Sandy was resting next to Maxwell.

Stan walked up angrily to them both.

"Hold it, buster. Don't come flirting with my sis when you already gave your heart to someone else!" Stan pushed Maxwell away and pulled Sandy with him.

"Stan! What are you doing? Why were you so rude to Maxwell and… Stan! You're hurting me! Let go!" Sandy broke Stan's grip and then glared at him. Stan did not flinch under his sister's glare like he usually did. In fact, he glared right back.

"Did you know that while you're giving your devoted love to Maxwell, he is only just toying with your feelings?" Stan began.

"Toying with my feelings? Oh, I bet you would know about that, huh?" Sandy said sarcastically. This was not how Stan thought Sandy would react.

"Huh?"

"You know what I'm talking about! All the time you flirt with my friends but really, you are only toying with their feelings! You don't love them and they sure as heck don't love you! But I assure you, Maxwell is not like that!"

"H-how could you say that!"

"Of course I can say it, because it's the truth!"

"I-I… this isn't about me! It's about you and Maxwell!"

"Of course it's about you! It always has been, isn't it? Look, just because you can't find a girlfriend, that doesn't mean you must get all sad and jealous and like, break up the relationship between your sis and her boyfriend!"

"But… but I saw…"

"Look, Stan, just give it up. I trust Maxwell with all my heart. Your joke isn't working," Sandy said firmly.

Maxwell blushed at this and began to speak. "Um… guys…"

"You trust Maxwell… but not your own brother? You… how could you! Sandy, you idiot!" Stan yelled.

"Stan! How could you say that?"

"Guys…" Maxwell tried to get the twins' attention once more. All the other hamsters were looking at the twins, not really understanding what had happened. It wasn't the first time the twins had a fight, but this one looked really serious. Bijou was looking quite scared.

"You stay out of this, Maxwell, I'm going to put my brother in his place!" Sandy said.

"But," Maxwell began before Stan interrupted once more.

"Oh yeah? How can you put me in my place, when you don't even know where you stand!" Stan retorted.

Tears began welling in Sandy's eyes.

"You… you are not my brother, are you? My brother would never speak to me like that! I… _sob_ I wish I never found you!" Sandy then ran out of the Clubhouse, sobbing. All the other girls chased her except Bijou, who glanced at Stan nervously. Maxwell seemed unsure of what to do. He then chased after Sandy before being followed by Bijou and the others.

"Sandy, wait! It was all a misunderstanding…!" Maxwell yelled.

The Clubhouse was empty now. Only Stan remained in it, wounded by Sandy's words. He then ran out of the Clubhouse through the other way, leaving behind only a single teardrop on the floor.

--------------------------------------------------

Author's Note:

Well, Maxwell and Bijou seems to be an odd pairing, eh? I thought so too. Believe me when I say I have an explanation for this, and things aren't what they seemed…

Coming up in Ch.2:

Maxwell and Bijou began explaining to Sandy what really happened while Stan and Sandy had a flashback of when they still lived in Hillary's room.

Normally… I don't submit stories until I complete them. However, because of this, I have not yet received a single review (hint hint). So I'm now submitting this story part-by-part.

The next chapter should be up by next Monday or sometime around then. No promises though, OK?

Hope you liked it so far.


	2. Entrance and Exit

A Brother To Me

Hi! I'm back for the second chapter! Thanks for all the reviews (and the alert!), and keep 'em coming! About the flashback, I did not italicize it because the flashback is quite long, and it would be painful to the eyes if the whole thing was italicized.

Disclaimer : I do not own Hamtaro and all the characters in it.

**----------------------------------------------**

**_Chapter Two : Entrance and Exit_**

**(Flashback of the past…)**

"C'mon, sis, it can't be that bad…"

"No, I'm serious! We might get hurt or lost or- or-"

"We'll be fine! I promise!"

"I don't want to! You can't make me!"

Stan sighed. "Okay then, suit yourself. I'm going out on my own," he said. It has been a week since Stan and Sandy moved to a new home. Both were nervous, but things turned out pretty well. Hillary was a good owner, and the twins knew it. However, that doesn't stop Sandy from being afraid to venture out into Hillary's room.

"Don't!" she yelled again.

"But why? You don't need to come, if you're afraid,"

"But what if there's a big monster out there, waiting to eat you?"

"I don't see any monsters from here. Just relax, I'm not going far away… just around here to see if there's anything fun to play with."

Stan pushed the cage-door up and was about to leave when Sandy grabbed his paw. "Don't leave me here by myself!"

"Sandy, it's only for a short while! I'll be back before you know it!"

"R-really?"

"I promise. Hey, I might even bring back a present for you! You never know what I could find!" Stan said cheerfully.

"I don't need any presents… I just want you…"

Stan hugged his sister. "I promise I'll come back in one piece."

Sandy hugged Stan tightly. Stan then proceeded out of the cage. "Don't go too long!" Sandy yelled.

"I won't!"

_I hope he'll be alright… Please let him be alright…_

----

Sandy stretched and yawned. "Morning, Stan," she muttered. When she did not hear his familiar voice reply, she looked around. "Heke?"

She saw the sky through the window. "Ahh! It's not morning! Stan! Where are you? Don't hide from me!" She yelled. When there was no answer, she remembered that Stan had left the cage to explore outside. She gasped.

_Wait a minute… Stan left when the sky was still blue! It's orange now… Stan has been gone for a long time! But he said… he said he would be back quickly…_

She ran up to the bars of the cage and scouted the room. She could not see hair nor hide of her twin brother. She began to get worried and imagined all the bad things that could have happened to Stan. "Stan! STAN! Where are you? You promised me… you promised… _sob_…"

Then, she felt a soft pat on her head. "Sandy… what's wrong?"

She looked up and saw the exact hamster that she had been waiting for. "Stan!"

"Were you… crying?" he asked, concerned.

"Y-yeah… I suppose I was… and it's all your fault!"

"My fault?"

"For leaving me like that! I was so scared… I thought you were gone forever…"

"Sandy, you know I'll always be here with you… I promised I'd be back and see? Here I am! And have I got a story to tell you!" Stan said.

"A story?"

"Yeah! This place is perfectly safe, Sandy! I've checked every corner, and there's no hint of anything that could harm us. I especially liked that little basket over there, see?" Stan pointed at Hillary's sewing basket on the table at the other end of the room. "There were lots of cool stuff in it! It's like a ham-heaven. And look! I got a surprise for you! Ta-dah!" Stan pulled out a small, thin stick with a long ribbon attached to it. "I made it myself!" he exclaimed.

"Wow! What is it?"

"It's a… uh… I don't know! But you can swing it like this… see?" Stan twirled the ribbon round and round. "I even made a song for it!"

"Twirling, whirling, round we - oof!" Stan had hooked his own tail with the ribbon and tripped. He got up again and handed Sandy the ribbon. "Ah well, I'm not too good at this sort of thing."

Sandy, on the other hand, was very happy with it. She hugged Stan. "Thank-Q very much! It's the best gift ever!"

"Hey, no problem. Take it as an apology gift for being outside so long. But at least now you know it's safe! You don't need to be scared of going out of the cage anymore."

Sandy nodded. "Hey, can you teach me that song again?"

---

It was night. Sandy could not sleep, probably because she slept earlier that day. Stan, on the other hand, was sleeping like a log. _He must be tired from all that exploring_, Sandy thought. She looked at her ribbon that Stan gave her. It was now her most prized possession. _I need to make something for Stan too! But… what? I know! I'll see what's inside that basket Stan mentioned earlier. Hillary's sleeping, she won't notice me…_

Sandy slowly lifted the door of the cage and got out. _I hope Stan is right when he said there was nothing to be afraid of out here... But… if he can do it, surely I can too!_

Sandy made her way towards the basket. She made sure not to cause too much noise in case Hillary or Stan woke up. _Geez… it's, like, so high up!_, she thought as she glanced at the sewing basket at the top of the table. Nevertheless, she began to climb. It took her quite some time to reach the top, and when she finally succeeded she was out of breath. What she saw in the basket took the rest of her breath away.

_Wow! Stan was totally right! It's like a hamster playground in here!_

She saw a big transparent case that contains a lot of colourful beads inside. She also saw a small pincushion with some needles sticking out of it. She saw some thread, ribbons (Stan must have taken some of these earlier on) and lots of small empty cases. She wasn't sure what these cases are for, but they are all of different, weird shapes. Sandy was sure that she had seen them once in Hillary's old dollhouse that Hillary had kept away when Stan and Sandy first moved in to Hillary's room. Sandy remembered Hillary saying that the dollhouse was her old toy that she never plays with anymore. She had to store it away to make room for Stan and Sandy's cage. **(A/N : Sorry to interrupt, but in case you're wondering, these 'cases' are actually toy bottles that Hillary used to play with when she was young. How it ended up here is anyone's guess)**

_I'm sure Hillary won't mind if I take about… two of these stuff._

Sandy took two bottle-shape cases and then looked around some more. She didn't think Stan had like just two empty cases… she needs to make it prettier! Then she laid her eyes on the small beads once more. _Aha! I shall put some beads into these bottle-thingies! I'm sure Hillary won't mind… there are so many of them and I will only take some…_

Sandy took six beads of different colours and put three into each of the cases. She then closed the two cases with two small corks lying around in the basket. _It looks so pretty now!_ Sandy thought as she held them high. She then heard a noise coming from the two cases each time she shakes it. _Weird! It's… musical! Stan is totally going to love this!_

She quickly made her way back to the cage, careful not to drop the new present she created for Stan. Inside the cage, Stan was still sleeping inside the hamster-house. Sandy hid her present behind the wheel, then looked out of the cage. _Well, what d'ya know, I went out and back, and I forgot to be scared!_ Sandy then snuggled up next to Stan and closed her eyes. She was exhausted after her long trip…

---

"Whoa, this is totally cool, man! A pair of maracas under the wheel! The shape is weird though, but that doesn't matter!"

Sandy's ears twitched. She got up, feeling groggy. "What's all the fuss about?" she said, sleepily.

"Yo, sis! Guess what I found under the wheel?" Stan exclaimed.

"Oh, uh… what?" Sandy pretended not to know.

"A pair of maracas!" Stan shook the maracas some more.

"Cool! You… really like them so much?"

"Yep!" Stan did a wild maracas-dance. "Thank you, sis!"

"W-wha? How'd you know it was me?"

"How else could a pair of maracas suddenly appear under the wheel? Hey… you finally got rid of your fear of going outside, huh?"

"Um… actually, I kinda forgot to be scared…"

"It doesn't matter! You did it! I'm real proud of ya!"

"Thanks, bro!"

The two spent the day performing with their maracas and ribbon…

**(END FLASHBACK)**

---

Sandy sobbed next to a tree stump. _Why does he have to be so mean? He was so kind and nice when we were young…_

"Sandy!" she heard the others call.

She quickly rubbed her tears away, not wanting the others to see her crying.

The others finally caught up with Sandy. Maxwell walked in front of the crowd and approached her.

"Sandy, are you alright?" he asked softly.

"Y-yeah… _sob_… I'm just… just a little upset, that's all…"

"Actually, the whole thing was kinda my fault, not Stan's…"

"What?"

"You see…."

---

**(Flashback to three days ago)**

It was another hot day, and Bijou had just arrived in the Clubhouse. "Bonjour! Eet eez me, Bijou! Where is everybody?" she called out. Nobody seemed to be there at all. What Bijou did not know was that Maxwell had somehow managed to lure everyone else outside.

Bijou walked to where she kept her jewelry box. It was one of her prized possessions and she kept all the beautiful gems and beads she had found inside. When she opened the box though, she had a shock. It was empty, except for a note. "Bring me 1,000,000 sunflower seeds, or you'll never see your precious stuff again! Yours sincerely, Ham Thief."

"How cruel! My jewelry! Who could have done such a thing?" she cried out. She looked at the note again. "So many zeroes! However can I find that many sunflower seeds! Hamtaroooooo! Where are you! Come and help me!"

At the same time, Maxwell had sneaked inside and was spying on Bijou. After seeing her cry out like that, he came out to her. "Gotcha, Bijou! You're on the Ham-Cam! Say cheese!"

"Ham-Cam…?"

"Yeah! You see, I'm going to let you in on a secret. Don't tell anyone else, OK? You see, the Summer Festival is coming up and after thinking about it for a long time, I've decided to do harmless pranks on other Ham-Hams, and record it all on tape! I got that idea from a TV show. Anyway, once I've done all my pranks, I'll show the whole tape during the Festival! Good idea, huh?"

"A prank…? So… my stuff being stolen was all a prank? A _harmless_ prank?"

"Yeah! It was a good idea right? Uh… why are you staring at me like that?"

"MAXWELLLLLLLLL! HOW DARE YOU!"

"Eep!" Maxwell ran for his dear life. Bijou chased him all over the Clubhouse, yelling things like "How dare you! I embarrassed myself in front of a camera! I was all like 'Hamtaroooo, help me!' and what will the others think of me? What will Hamtaro think?"

"Well, if you really like Hamtaro that much, you should let him see this! Then he might actually tell you his feelings!" Maxwell said while closing his eyes and covering his head with his hands.

Bijou blushed at this. "Well…"

Realizing that Bijou was not going to whack him, Maxwell stood up properly again. "If you don't make the first move, somebody might just steal Hamtaro away from you!"

"!"

_Phew!_ Maxwell sighed with relief. "Bijou… you need to stop hiding your feelings! Let it out!"

"I still think it eez a very cruel and harmful joke."

"Well… if you'd calm down a bit it wouldn't be so bad. Anyway, I need your help now. See, you're the first person I did this on, because I thought you would be the easiest-"

"You thought that I would be very easy to fool!" Bijou's eyes flared.

"No no no, I mean, all I had to do was put the camera here and take away your stuff! I could do that alone! But to trick the others, I need your help. Now, my next target is Stan and Sandy. You know… to put their brother-sister relationship to the test! It would be great on tape! And now, here's the plan…" Maxwell began telling Bijou his evil plan in detail.

**(End Flashback of three days ago)**

---

"And… that's actually what happened," Maxwell said carefully, surveying Sandy's expression.

"You mean… Stan was right?"

"He saw what he thought he saw, yes. But Bijou and I were only pretending to confess our love to each other!" Maxwell explained.

"Stan… he…," Sandy sobbed. She blinked back some tears, then glared at Maxwell. "MAXWELLLLLLLL!" She began chasing him.

"Not again!" Maxwell lamented as he ran away while the others watched.

"Well, that's the second girl that after him this week," Dexter commented.

"At least he can't say that the girls aren't chasing him, though! Haha!" Howdy commented.

---

After Sandy stopped chasing Maxwell, he walked towards her. "Sandy…" he said softly as he held her paw. She hugged him for comfort.

"I hate you…" Sandy was still crying softly.

"Yeah, I know it's my fault. Do you forgive me?"

"Of course… but Stan… will he forgive me? He was only concerned about me, and I did not believe him. I shouldn't have scolded him so… I should have listened…"

"Ah, drama. Anybody brought some popcorn?" Boss commented. Pashmina motioned for him to be quiet.

"Don't be silly, Sandy, Stan will forgive you! He's always so… so… uh… happy-go-lucky! Yeah, he's always cheerful and all smiles! All you got to do is explain to him what exactly happened," Maxwell said. _I hope he'll let me off though_, he thought.

"Yeah, Sandy! Cheer up! It's not so bad!" Pashmina said. "Ookwee!" Penelope agreed. "Sandy? I suppose I must apologize, too. I should have not listened to Maxwell, I told him his jokes were not harmless! Sorry!" Bijou said.

"Thanks guys… and don't worry about it Bijou, Maxwell. Perhaps this would teach me not to jump to conclusions again. Let's all get back to the Clubhouse, shall we? I have got to talk to someone there…" Sandy said.

"OK!" the others said together. Oxnard, however, was looking at another direction. He did not like what he saw at all.

"Uh, guys…"

"What, Oxy?" Hamtaro asked.

"Look!"

The others all looked at where Oxnard is pointing. Three yellow figures were running full-speed at them from a distance, but they are drawing closer and closer by the second.

"Ahhhhhhh! It's the…" Hamtaro began.

"The Chicky-Chickies!" Boss finished. The Chicky-Chickies were one of the hamsters' deadliest enemies. The Ham-Hams had had plenty of encounters with them, and thankfully no one had ever got seriously injured.

The others began running back to the Clubhouse. One by one they escaped to safety. Howdy was the last to get in. He slammed the door and yelled out through the window.

"Well come and get me if yer dare, or are you chicken! Hahahaha!"

"Quiet, or it'll be you they're after next!" Dexter hissed at Howdy.

"But, what are they doing here again?" Panda asked.

"Who knows? Who cares?" Boss said.

"I care! We are all in danger with them around!" Pashmina said.

While the others discussed about the Chicky-Chickies, Sandy looked around the Clubhouse. "Uh… Stan? Stan! Come out! I need to talk to you!" she waited for a reply from her brother but Stan either wasn't there or pretended not to listen.

"Guys, where's Stan?" she asked.

"Huh? He's not here?" Boss said. They were distracted by the Chicky-Chickies and had forgotten all about Stan (again).

"Don't worry, we'll help you look!" Maxwell offered. Each and every one of them searched the whole Clubhouse. Hamtaro and Oxnard searched the top, Boss searched his room, the girls searched the middle section (Howdy and Dexter tried to follow Pashmina but was pulled back by the boys) and the other boys searched the lower section. All of them got the same results.

"Stan… he isn't in the Clubhouse!" Sandy exclaimed.

**------------------------------------------------------**

**Author's Notes:**

Actually, I don't know much about the Chicky-Chickies. I only knew them from the GBA game (Rainbow Rescue). Apparently, they appeared in the TV show a few times? Can anyone give me some info like where do they come from?

Also, I did not like the flashback part that much, but oh well. And the truth about Max and Bijou is finally out! Were you surprised? Or did you see that coming? Either way, I shall start working on the next chapter now…

I'm also sorry that Sandy had to cry a lot in the flashback, but I remember in an episode Stan said Sandy used to cry a lot. She'll get braver though.

NEXT:

Stan meets a friend while Sandy and the others try to find him. And another flashback! Now that Sandy isn't afraid to get out of the cage, what does Stan have in store for her?


	3. Search and Discovery

A Brother To Me

Back with the third chapter. About the flashback, I did not italicize it because the flashback is quite long, and it would be painful to the eyes if the whole thing was italicized. Thank you people for the info on the Chicky-Chickies and reviews!

Disclaimer : I do not own Hamtaro and all the characters in it.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**_Chapter Three : Search and Discovery_**

**(FLASHBACK)**

"C'mon, sis! Just a little trip!"

"No!"

Now that Sandy was not afraid of exploring Hillary's room, Stan thought it would be fun if they went to the outside world together. They had just discovered a small hole in the wall that leads directly outside.

"Remember when you were afraid to leave the cage? You were only worried over nothing! The outside world is just like Hillary's room, only a million times bigger! And probably better!"

"I still refuse!"

Stan sighed. Sandy was one stubborn hamster. "Fine then, once again I'll be leaving by myself."

"No, wait!" Sandy called.

"Hm?"

"You're not leaving me here alone again, are you?"

"Well, since you're the one refusing to come, you're the one leaving yourself alone here."

"But you can stay here and be a good hamster and… and not always want to go on some crazy adventure everyday!"

"But you know me, sis! I cannot resist the wild urge to try something new… you should come! I promise I'll protect you, and I always keep my promises. You know that, right?" Stan said.

"Yes, I do, but… we might get lost…" Sandy said, looking outside.

"Let's just stick with this small park I can see from here. We won't get lost then."

"_Small?_ You call that park small? Look at the size of it! I can't even see where it ends…"

"Aw come on, we won't go too deep inside, OK? We will just look around, get to know the neighbourhood, you know? We might even meet other hamsters out there."

"But what if these hamsters aren't friendly at all?" Sandy asked.

"Aren't you the pessimist. Everything will be fine, don't worry. Now, take my paw. Let's go."

----

"Here we are! The park-in-front-of-Hillary's-house. Isn't the outside world just beautiful?" Stan asked. Both of them were at the entrance of the park. From there, they could see a playground, trees, some woods, trees, an area with a fountain and more trees. They saw a lot of hamsters their age playing at the playground.

"First stop, the playground!"

The playground is just like any other. It has swings, slides, a sandbox, seesaws and more. It even has a resting area under a huge tree for parents to wait while their children play. It was in this resting area that Stan and Sandy are at now.

"This is totally awesome!" Stan said. Even Sandy had to admit Stan was right. She was no longer afraid like she was ten minutes ago.

"Well well well, new kids in the block, eh?" a voice came from behind them.

The twins turned to see three big hamsters (although they looked to be about the same age as the twins). They were all brown in colour, and their fur were ruffled and untidy.

"Hamha guys! Nice to meet you!" Stan greeted cheerfully. In the same time, Sandy turned to look at the playground only to find that it was empty. _Where did all the children go?_

"Well, you are the polite one, aren't you?" said the biggest of the trio. Stan's smile began to fade while Sandy noticed smirks forming in their mouths. "Nice to _beat_ you too," the stranger said. "Let's go, Stan! Run, run!" Sandy urged. Both of them slowly backed away until they noticed a large shadow covering all five of them. "Heke?"

Stan and Sandy turned around only to find a large grey cat. The cat looked at them with evil intention, wearing a smirk not unlike the ones that the three bullies were wearing earlier.

"MEOW!" the cat swiped at the group of five, who all began screaming and running at every-which-way. Unknown to the twins, they were both running off at opposite directions…

----

Stan laid down on the grass, panting. "That was a close one, huh, Sandy?" he asked. When no reply came, he looked around.

"Sandy? Where are you?" Stan looked around. "Where… where am I?"

No one was around. He was surrounded by a large field of trees and lots of brownish stuff on the ground. Upon closer inspection, he discovered they were acorns. The place was full of them; along with pinecones and fallen autumn leaves. It was beautiful and serene. And nobody was there. It was all his.

He ran around, playing with everything he could get his paws on. He juggled some acorns, balanced on a pinecone, and made a wild dive into a whole pile of leaves. "This is heaven…" he mumbled, lying down on top of the leaves. He sat up and looked around his newfound paradise once more.

"I'm naming this place Acorn Mountain! You shall be the place I treasure most, the place I escape to for some fun. I'm not sharing this secret with anyone… except, maybe Sandy… oh, Sandy! I forgot about her!" Stan immediately climbed the tree closest to him and looked around. He spotted the playground easily. _We got separated there, so I suppose I'd better wait there for her. I just hope that cat isn't around again._

He immediately bounded off to the playground, leaving behind his private sanctuary.

----

"I told you to stay at home but did you listen? Noooooo, you just had to pull me out into this place!" Sandy yelled as she ran further and further. When no reply came, she turned her head. "Stan?" she called, but Stan was not there. _Oh no… we were separated!_

She looked around her to see where she was. It turned out she was at the fountain. Lots of other hamsters were hanging around there, too, but none of them was the one she was looking for. She walked around the edge of the fountain, still looking around. While running away from the cat, she had forgotten to remember which was the way back. As a result, she is now lost.

At the same time, a tall, brown hamster who was reading a book came walking in Sandy's direction. Both of them were not paying attention and they bumped into each other. Sandy lost her balance and fell straight into the fountain. "Help! I can't swim!" she yelled.

The hamster with the book quickly reached out his hand. "Grab on!" he yelled. "I-I can't reach!" Sandy yelled back. The brown hamster reached out further, almost falling into the fountain himself. Sandy stretched with all her might and finally grabbed onto his paws. He pulled her up and both of them lay down, panting. "Thanks," Sandy said.

"It was nothing," said the brown hamster. "Are you new here? I have never seen you before."

"This is my first time outside, yes," Sandy said.

"Well, take care then. I'm on my way home. It's getting late."

"W-wait! Do you know how to get to the playground?" Sandy asked.

"Make a left at this corner and just keep going straight. You can't miss it."

"OK, thank-Q. Bye!"

"See ya!" the brown hamster said before walking off, reading his book again.

"A left, then straight… a left, then straight…" Sandy muttered over and over to herself. She began running to the playground, hoping Stan was safe.

---

By the time Sandy reached the playground, Stan was already there, looking around for any signs of his sister. "Stan!" she yelled, and the male tiger-striped hamster looked in her direction. "Sandy! There you are!"

Both of them ran towards each other. They hugged. "I've been looking all over for you!" Sandy said. "Me too. By the way, why are you soaking wet? Has it been raining where you were?" Stan asked.

"Don't ask. Well, had enough adventures for today? Should we head home now?"

"No objections! Besides, Hillary would be home in about… maybe fifteen minutes?"

"Fifteen minutes! Do we have enough time to sneak back in?"

"We sure do, as long as we stop talking and start running!" Stan ran off towards their owner's house.

"Wait for me!"

**(END OF FLASHBACK)**

----------------------

_So tired… so weak… _

Stan had been walking for ages now. He did not even know where he was going, nor where he is now. Neither did he care. All he wanted was to get away from it all. He did not stop to eat or drink. Therefore, he is now a complete wreck. He walked three or four more steps and finally collapsed. His feet could bear no more.

He closed his eyes, not caring what would happen to him if he just lied down there. It was then he heard something walk up to him. "What is that?" a soft voice said. The mysterious person walked up to Stan and inspected him. "Well if it isn't a fellow hamster lying down on the sidewalk," the stranger said. Stan recognized the voice. He sat up slowly and opened his eyes.

"You… are Jingle, aren't you?" Stan asked. **(A/N: I'm not too sure what's the friendship between Stan and Jingle like, so let's just say they don't know each other too well.)**

"Ah, you know me. I think I know you too. Your name was… let's see… Candy, was it?"

"No, I think you're referring to Sandy," Stan said. It hurt him to say her name. "I'm her older brother, Stan."

"Well then, Pan…"

"It's Stan."

"Stan?"

"Yes, you got it."

"Well then, Phan…"

Stan sighed. "Oh well… my name doesn't matter anyway."

"Exactly! So… why are you so down with a frown?"

"It… is not important."

"Yep! Nothing in life is important, that is what I always say. Look at all the people rushing here and there and in the end, they get to nowhere. Wanna go on a never-ending trip with me and my pet pig, Herbert?" Jingle offered.

"Well… OK, I suppose…"

Stan and Jingle hopped onto Herbert and the pig began walking slowly. It was now that Stan began to look at his surroundings. He was surprised to find that he was surrounded by a large field of flowers under the evening sun's orange glow. He had never been here before. Nobody was in sight, making the scene even more lonely yet comforting. Stan and Jingle sat with their backs against each other. Jingle tossed him a seed. "Here, I always pack a seed for a friend in need."

"Thanks," Stan said and began to nibble on it. Jingle began to play a soft sad tune on his guitar. It somewhat soothes Stan's crying soul and yet makes him want to cry out loud. "Aw, stop it! I'm already depressed enough without you playing your sad song!"

"Then get it off your chest, for that would be best. So tell me now, what has brought you down?" Jingle said. Stan hesitated, and then poured out his whole story. Jingle listened attentively, occasionally strumming his guitar once or twice.

Once Stan had finished his story, Jingle paused and seemed to think about something. "The best advice is to empty your mind and leave it all behind," he said.

"Uh… no good. Anything else?"

"Maybe you need to think why Handy would be mad at you. Were you at fault when you fought with her?"

"No! I told her what I saw and she did not believe me!"

"But why wouldn't Dandy believe you?" Jingle asked, getting Sandy's name wrong yet again.

"I don't know."

"Sometimes, a wounded today is because of a bleeding yesterday. Know what I mean?"

"You mean… she did not believe me because of something that happened in the past?"

"Could be. Stretch your horizon and walk down memory lane. What have you done to hurt the past?"

"Uh… let's see…" Stan pondered. Memories of all the fights and arguments between him and his sister ran through his mind. Usually it was he who started them. But why? Was it because he was just teasing Sandy? Was it because he was bored and wanted to start a fight just for the fun of it? Or… was it as Sandy said? Was he really jealous because nobody seemed to really like him?

"So, found anything?" Jingle asked.

"Yeah. I found out that thinking gives me a big headache."

"Then empty your mind. Take it easy and you won't feel queasy. Let life's worries fade away as you ride down life's rocky path. You'll feel better, trust me," Jingle said. He then played a different tune. This tune was calming; a tune that distracts one's mind. Stan closed his eyes and let Jingle's song carry him off to sleep while Herbert continues trotting down the lonely path.

-----

"Do you think Stan is safe out there?" Cappy asked the other Ham-Hams in the Clubhouse.

"Ssshh!" hissed the others. Boss pointed at Sandy, who was sitting in Stan's usual spot high in the Clubhouse. "Don't want her to hear that, do ya?" Boss said.

"But Cappy has a point though. The Chicky-Chickies are on the loose. What if they find Stan?" Pashmina whispered. "Don't worry, Stan is one tough guy; he won't fall prey to them that easily," Boss assured.

"Imagine that coming from you," Howdy said.

"Well, of course he's not as tough as me, but he's still able to protect himself," Boss said. He was perhaps one of Stan's biggest rivals when it comes to certain things, especially sports.

"The Chicky-Chickies outnumber him though. There are five of them, right? It's a five to one ratio," Maxwell commented. "Things aren't in Stan's favour…"

"Aw, you guys are such pessimists! We aren't even sure that Stan and the Chicky-Chickies will meet. The world is so large!" Dexter said.

"Seeing as you live with an optician, it's no wonder that you're an optimist. Get it?" Howdy laughed at his own joke. "Be quiet, Howdy, now isn't the time for puns," Dexter scolded.

"But why are the Chicky-Chickies here anyway? Why aren't they at their ranch?" Hamtaro asked.

"They must be tired of the food there," Howdy said.

"Yeah, perhaps they would like to know what Howdy tastes like," Dexter said. "How rude!" Howdy commented. The two began to argue, leaving the others to discuss among themselves.

"So, do we wait here for Stan or head out to look for him?" Boss said.

"I say we wait!" Hamtaro and Oxnard said together.

"But if he hasn't come back by now, I don't think he will come back anytime soon," Bijou said.

"Fair point," Pashmina said while Penelope nodded in agreement. Just then, Sandy walked down from the top. Maxwell quickly motioned for the others to be silent about Stan.

"Hiya Sandy! How are you feeling?" Maxwell asked cheerfully.

"I'm OK," she said softly, although her face suggested the opposite. "Why are you guys still here? Won't your owners be back soon?" she asked.

The others gasped. They had all forgotten to look at the time. "Gotta go! Laura should be home any time soon!" Hamtaro said. "Kana too," Oxnard added.

"I think we'd better all go home now," Pashmina said.

"Ookwee," Penelope agreed.

"But Sandy, what about you?" Maxwell asked.

"I'm staying here… I want to wait for Stan. Boss, you don't mind, do you?" Sandy asked. "But what about Hillary?" Maxwell questioned.

"Didn't I tell you? Hillary and Noel are away on a trip together. For four days. Stan might have mentioned it…" Sandy's ears drooped lower when she mentioned Stan's name.

"Uh, well, if you want to stay here, go ahead! I don't mind, you can stay as long as you want," Boss said.

"Thanks."

Maxwell hugged Sandy. "Cheer up, Stan will be alright. In the meantime, me and the others will look out for any sign of him, OK?"

"Thanks, Maxwell. I hope you're right…"

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**AUTHOR'S NOTES**

I had more fun writing this flashback than the previous one. Jingle's section was fun to write too, although rhyming was hard to do. The Clubhouse scene on the other hand felt a little weird. Oh well. I hope you liked it anyways.

Next chapter…:

Sandy thinks she knows where Stan is while Stan and Jingle continue their talk. And of course, a flashback. What kind of adventures will young Stan and Sandy get into this time?


	4. Sanctuary

A Brother To Me

Here I am again with Chapter Four. Thank you for the reviews.

Disclaimer: I do not own Hamtaro and all the characters in it.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Chapter Four : Sanctuary**

**(FLASHBACK)**

"Shall we go to the park again today?" Sandy asked Stan. Since the last trip, Stan and Sandy had made many more trips to the park. Unlike the first time though, their other trips were fun and safe. Sandy is now used to the park and no longer complains when Stan wants to go. In fact, she was the one who sometimes suggest they make a quick trip there.

"If you want to. It's not like I have anything else better to do anyway," Stan said as he tossed one of his maracas up and down.

"Great! Let's go!" Sandy pushed open the cage door and ran towards the hole in the wall. "Sis, wait up!" Stan trailed behind (for the first time ever).

---

"Whoa, Sandy, what's the rush?" Stan asked while following her. Sandy was already in the park, heading for the playground at full-speed. "I wanna meet my friends!" she yelled back.

"Wow, I didn't know you had friends," Stan was still quite behind Sandy.

"I only became friends with them yesterday."

"Yesterday? But I was with you the whole time! I would have seen you making friends with them!"

"No you were not! You left me for a while to talk with some of your friends, didn't you?" Sandy asked. They had both arrived in the playground now.

"My friends?" Stan was confused.

_---_

"_Hi guys!" Stan greeted a group of male hamsters._

"_Who are you?" one of them asked._

"_I'm Stan! Haven't you seen me here before?"_

"_Well, it would be hard to notice you, since you're so small!" another hamster said and they all began to laugh._

"_That's not very nice…"_

"_Well, I don't think you're very nice either."_

"_But why? What did I do…"_

"_For starters, you exist!" the group laughed some more. A dejected Stan left them and ran off to find his sister._

---

"Oh… you meant them. Well, they aren't my friends!" Stan said, disgusted at the idea. "And I only left you for like, ten minutes?"

"It only took about five to become friends with someone. You probably didn't see them because they went home a while after that, but they promised to meet me again! Look! There they are!" Sandy pointed at a group of three girls chatting away at the sandbox. "Hey! It's me, Sandy!" she ran off towards the girls.

Stan followed Sandy slowly, a little uncertain. He felt he should be friends with the group of girls too, but he had never talked to a girl-ham before (with the exception of Sandy). He saw no reason why he shouldn't, but he can't help but notice that all the kids in the playground are separated by gender.

"Uh… hamha!" he greeted. The group of girls turned to look at him. "Wow, Sandy, this girl looks just like you!" a light brown hamster commented.

"Actually, I'm a boy," Stan said sheepishly.

"A boy!" the girls exclaimed.

"Yep, my brother! Is something wrong?" Sandy asked.

"Well, no, it's just that… boys aren't allowed to talk to girls!"

"Uh… can't they?" Stan asked sheepishly.

"I think so. Do you see any girls here besides us talking to a boy?" one of Sandy's friends said.

"No, but that doesn't mean I can't break tradition, right?" Stan asked. "Well…" the girls thought.

"C'mon girlfriends! Give Stan a chance! He won't bite!" Sandy pleaded.

"OK then! We'll give you a chance, seeing as you are Sandy's brother and all," a grayish hamster said. "Right girls?" she asked the others. "Right!" they agreed.

"Thanks guys! Er, I mean, gals!"

---

The girls were a bit reluctant to let Stan join the group at first, but they soon found Stan to be entertaining and cool. Stan too felt comfortable with the girls. He gained a few odd stares from other hamsters while some would intentionally walk past and snicker, but he ignored them all. Together, they talked about pretty much everything. Stan and Sandy even did a maracas-ribbon-twirling performance. They had lots of fun until three hamsters appeared behind them. One of them grabbed Stan's maracas as he swung them around.

"Hey! Give that back!" Stan yelled.

"Playing with the girls now, are we?" the one who snatched the maracas sneered. It turned out they were the three ham-bullies they met last time.

"What's it to you? Now give that back!"

"Oh, sure, like I'm going to just hand it to you, say sorry and leave. Dream on, shorty!" By now, everyone else in the park were all hiding behind trees and rocks, watching the scene unfold. One of Sandy's friends tugged on Stan. "Stan, quick apologize and get away! These three have been terrorizing the playground for ages now, you don't want trouble!"

"No way! I didn't do anything wrong! I just want my maracas back!" Stan tried to grab his maracas but the bullies tossed them back and forth between one and another. Stan began chasing his maracas wherever they were tossed, much to the bullies' amusement. Finally, Sandy snapped.

"Leave him alone!" she yelled. The bullies stopped their cat-and-mouse game and looked at her. Their looks of surprise were quickly replaced with smirks. Stan quickly grabbed his maracas and put it away in a safe place.

"Ooh, a girl! I'm so scared!" the bullies began laughing. "What are you going to do about it, little girl? Cry to your mommy?"

"You're right, I **am** a girl, and this is what I'm going to do to you!" Sandy pulled out her ribbon and aimed it at one of the bullies. She hooked his feet and tripped him. He landed with a thud on the ground. The crowd whom are still hiding gasped; perhaps with awe or perhaps for fear of Sandy's safety. They had every right to be afraid, as all three of the bullies looked very angry. Sandy, however, did not cower.

"You're gonna get it now, girl! Playtime is over!" the bullies chased Sandy, who began running. "Not so tough now, are you!" a bully taunted. Seeing this, Stan searched for a weapon. "Weapon… weapon… ah! Stickie! Perfect!"

As the three bullies chased after Sandy, one of Sandy's friends tripped a bully up. "No way are you going to hurt one of my girlfriends!" she said. The other two were still chasing Sandy though, but Stan came from nowhere and hit a bully hard with his stick. Sandy stopped to rest and saw that the third bully was catching up. Just before the bully could pound her though, help came from an unlikely source, the crowd.

Some of the crowd who were hiding earlier have now picked up some stones and begun tossing them at the bully. "Eat this!" "We're sick and tired of you!" "Leave us alone!" "Pick on hamsters your own size!" "We don't want you here!" they all yelled while continuing the assault. Some of the crowd was also helping Sandy's friends get rid of a bully. Stan was fighting with another bully who was trying to dodge Stan's stick.

"You ain't fighting fair!" the bully yelled as Stan tried a quick jab. The bully quickly grabbed a stick nearby while Stan dealt a big blow. The bully rubbed his head and hissed at Stan, "Now the real battle begins."

The bully and Stan engaged in a heated battle, stabbing and parrying each other. The whole playground was at war. Half of the crowd were fighting with the bully that was chasing Sandy while the other half was fighting with the one which was tripped by Sandy's friend earlier on.

After catching her breath, Sandy looked at where Stan is. The sword-battle was still going on and it was hard to tell who is winning. Sandy decided to help. She tied a stone to the end of her ribbon, then ran towards the bully and used her ribbon as a whip.

"Take that!" she yelled and lashed at the bully. It hit the bully hard and stunned him. Stan leapt up and came crashing down with a huge blow. The bully couldn't take it anymore and wept while running away. He was followed by the other two bullies.

"I don't think we'll see any of them anymore," Sandy said, smiling. "Not unless they want another thrashing!" Stan added. The other hamsters in the playground cheered and celebrated. They are finally free from what has been plaguing them for so long. Stan and Sandy are pretty much in the spotlight for standing up to the bullies. Both of them received pats and praises.

The group of hamsters that insulted Stan the day before even walked up to him and apologized for being rude. "No hard feelings," Stan smiled as he shook their paws.

"Hey Sandy, thanks," Stan said.

"For what?" she asked.

"You helped me out twice back there: when they grabbed my maracas and when I was fighting that big guy back there."

Sandy blushed. "It was nothing," she said. "You're the best sis one could ever want!" Stan added.

From that day onwards, the kids at the playground are no longer separated by gender. They played and worked together, helping one another when in need. Some people still tell of the time when two brave tiger-striped hamsters stood up to the villains of the playground and united the hamsters there, and the tale lives on.

**(END OF FLASHBACK)**

--------------------------

_In the past… have I hurt Sandy? All the times I teased her and mocked her… she knew I didn't really mean it, right? I… I did not mean it, right?_

"You awake?" Jingle asked.

"Yeah, I just woke up," Stan said with his eyes still closed. He was telling the truth. He just woke up and immediately started thinking about what Jingle had said before he slept.

"I can tell. Your snore is a wonder, for it is louder than thunder."

"W-what? I SNORE?"

"Maybe. It might have been the wind."

"The wind… I didn't know wind could snore louder than thunder."

"Or it might have been you saying Mandy's name over and over when you were sleeping."

"Mandy? Oh, you meant Sandy. Wait… was I saying her name over and over?"

"That you were. Why, can't get your mind off her?" Jingle asked.

"I… well, I was convinced that Sandy is in the wrong for not believing me. But then you showed up and said all those strange things… now I'm not so sure. Do you think I have really hurt our past?"

"Don't ask me. Only you know the answer."

_Yeah. I have hurt Sandy in the past without knowing and without meaning it. That is the sad truth. But is this the end for both of us? Do we still have a future? Is it too late to untie the knots I made?_

"Do you think it is too late for me now? To undo my wrongs, I mean?" Stan asked.

"Never too late to try, and let me tell you why. They say that all wounds heal through time, but sometimes, you just need to speed it up. Unless you make your move, things will remain as it is," Jingle advised.

"So… I should just apologize?"

"It would seem so."

"So… I need to head back to Sandy. But… we've walked a long way now… how am I supposed to go back?"

"Open your eyes."

"But they're already open."

"Don't you know this place?"

Stan looked around. It was a large field of trees that all seemed familiar to him. Then he knew.

"It is your sanctuary, Acorn Mountain," Jingle explained.

"How… how did you know?"

"You told me in your sleep. The woods in the park near the playground… this is it."

'_Did I tell my entire life story to Jingle in my sleep?_' Stan thought to himself. "I'd better get going then. Thanks a lot, Jingle! Bye Herbert!"

Herbert grunted and Jingle waved. "Bye and good luck, Pan!"

-----

"I'm so tired…" Sandy muttered.

"I wouldn't be surprised, seeing as how _someone_ stayed up all night waiting in front of the door," Boss commented. It was morning and everyone else has not arrived at the Clubhouse yet.

"Here, have a seed or something," Boss offered but was turned down by Sandy. "C'mon, we don't want you to die of hunger here…"

"I'm not hungry."

"Suit yourself then, but I'm still having my breakfast."

"Yeah, you do that."

"Oh come on, Sandy, I don't want to see a fellow Ham-Ham this depressed..."

"But this whole thing is all my fault! If I hadn't yelled at Stan like that… if I hadn't said all those things, he would still be here! Now he has run off to who-knows-where and he might never come back! He might never want to see me again! Who knows if he's even alive right now?" Sandy burst out.

"Come now, there's no reason why Stan wouldn't be alive, is there?"

"I heard you guys talking about the Chicky-Chickies."

"Oh. But it was as Dexter said, he might not even cross paths with the Chicky-Chickies. In fact, for all we know, Stan might be sitting by himself in his cage all day, waiting for Noel to…"

"His cage! Why didn't I think of that? Thanks, Boss, I'm going right now!"

"Hey, wait! I shall come with you! Snoozer, you guard the place, OK?" Boss and Sandy left the Clubhouse and bounded towards Noel's house.

"Zuzuzuzu…." Snoozer continued sleeping.

_At Noel's house…_

"His cage should be up there on that table. There! You see it? Can you see Stan?" Sandy asked Boss.

"It's too far up, I can't see anything."

"Let's climb. Hopefully, Stan is inside…"

"Me too. I can't wait for this nightmare to finish."

Sandy and Boss entered Stan's cage and looked around. It was surprisingly neat, with a few toys lying around and a huge pile of sunflower seeds and a bowl full of water.

"Wow, must be his own ham-heaven, huh?" Boss said but Sandy did not really hear him. She was looking for Stan.

"Stan! Are you there? Please come out!"

"Stan! Come out now, you hear?" Boss yelled too.

"I think he's not here," Sandy said, her voice a little shaky.

"Don't worry, I am sure he will be alright, wherever he is," Boss patted Sandy on the back.

"But where… where could he have gone to?" Sandy said. Then, she remembered something Boss had said earlier. _Wow, must be his own ham-heaven, huh?_

Ham-heaven…? Heaven… his sanctuary, where he would go to when he needed to think or relieve some stress… would that not be…

"Acorn Mountain."

"Sorry?"

"Acorn Mountain," Sandy repeated.

"You mean… that place Stan brought us to last time for our field trip? That time when Bijou was mad at Hamtaro for using her ribbon?"

"Yes. After that field trip, he told me that Acorn Mountain was the place he found a long time ago, when we were separated in the park. Back then, we were still living together with Hillary. He meant to tell me earlier, but he said he forgot. He also said that when he needed some time to think by himself, he would go there. I told him he would never ever use that place then, for he never needed to do some serious thinking. Yes, I'm sure he's there!" Sandy concluded.

"OK then, let's go now, if you want."

"No, you go back to the Clubhouse, the others should be here anytime now. I'll go there by myself. I need to talk to him alone…"

"Are you sure about this? Will you be safe by yourself?"

"I won't be by myself. Stan will be there. I just know it. And I will be safe, because he promised me long ago that he would protect me… and he always keep his promises. Always."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**AUTHOR'S NOTES**

Another chapter done, and we're nearing the end, people! No, the next chapter isn't the final one. I'm also thinking of doing a deleted ideas chapter, you know? It will contain scenes that I've thought of putting in this story, but was scraped altogether or replaced by a better scene. Not confirmed yet though.

Next chapter will contain yet another flashback, and will Stan and Sandy finally meet up? Or are they really lost forever… anything could happen.


	5. Lost and Found

A Brother To Me

Here I am again with Chapter Five. Thank you for the reviews and please keep them coming! A review is like a fuel in a car, you see? The more you have, the further you go. A flame, on the other hand, is like a badly drawn road map. Not helpful and a waste of space. If you don't like my story, then please say it nicely with suggestions on how to improve it.

Disclaimer: I do not own Hamtaro and all the characters in it.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Chapter Five : Lost and Found**

**(FLASHBACK)**

"Hillary's home!" Stan called out. It was early in the morning, and Hillary had just come back from a morning jog with a friend of hers. She put down her stuff and said hi to the hamsters. This was her usual routine for days now, so it was nothing new to Stan and Sandy. However, today Hillary looked a little troubled. She sighed as she looked at Stan and Sandy, who were both staring right back.

"You both look so happy together…" Hillary said with a sad smile. "I'm going to bathe and then I have got to tell you something… but you probably don't understand me, right?" Hillary headed for the bathroom.

"What was she talking about?" Stan asked Sandy.

"How would I know? Maybe she has a crush or something."

"Well, I hope the crush doesn't crush her," Stan smirked. "But then again, if she has a crush, don't you think she would be happier or something?"

"I know! Maybe her crush already crushed her," Sandy replied.

"Nothing more painful than lost love," Stan nodded.

"What would you know about it? You've never been in love before."

"Well, I love you, I love Hillary, I love our world and I love me."

Sandy laughed. "But you still have all of them! And you always will. I love all of those that you just mentioned too. I don't know what I would do if even one of them leaves me forever."

"Well, they are here to stay! Just one big family till the end of time…"

"Yeah…" Sandy agreed. They began playing around in the cage while waiting for Hillary's news.

-----

Hillary put up her towels on the rack and sat down in front of the hamsters. Stan and Sandy looked at her attentively, wondering what news she is going to announce.

"Well… I am afraid I have some bad news. Stan, Sandy… starting tomorrow, you won't be living together anymore."

"Uh… Sandy? Did I just hear Hillary right?"

Hillary continued. "My friend, Noel, has offered to take care of one of you. After thinking about it, I realize that taking care of only one hamster would be a lot easier on me. I know it sounds really selfish… but I know Noel would take good care of whichever one of you! I'm sorry… I know you both like each other very much… but I have to. I'm sorry…" Hillary said before leaving the room in a rush. Apparently, she couldn't bear to look at the twins.

The news, of course, broke the twins. Stan was quite mad while Sandy was on the verge of tears.

"It's not fair! We are innocent! Why must we be separated because of some stupid crush?" Stan bellowed.

"She didn't mention he was a crush though…" Sandy said slowly.

"Maybe so, but then why would this… this… this Nole guy want to take care of one of us? It's obvious that he has a crush on Hillary then!"

"But… does this mean we won't be together again?"

"…"

"Stan?"

"Let's go to the park."

-----

At the park, Stan and Sandy chatted with their friends. They explained about what was going to happen to one of them, and they bade farewell. Tomorrow, only one of the twins would enter the park. The other would be in a new home, a new world. None of the hamsters knew which one would be walking down the park tomorrow. None of the hamsters knew which one would be sitting in the sandbox the next day. None of them knew what tomorrow would bring. What they do know is that they will miss seeing the twins together.

---

It was already evening and the twins are sitting on a high tree branch, looking at the sunset in the horizon. It was the last day that they have together, and they wanted to make sure that they make the most of it.

"It is beautiful, don't you think?" Stan said.

"The sunset? Yeah, it is."

"It is hard to believe that this is the last one we'll see together."

"Don't say 'last', Stan."

"But it's the truth. One of us will be put in a new home with a new master. We will never see each other again."

"Don't say that! I won't hear it! We will see each other again, _we will_!" all the tears that Sandy had kept back are now pouring out.

"Sandy…"

"Promise me, Stan. Promise me we'll meet again. I don't know when and I don't know how, but just promise me."

"Sandy… some things I just can't promise…"

"But why? Why? You always keep your promises! If you promise we'll meet again, then we definitely will!"

"But this is different! All those promises last time I made because I was certain I could keep them! But this… this isn't something I can control, Sandy…"

"But… we really… we really won't see each other again?" Sandy said in between sobs. Seeing her like this made Stan start to cry too. Both of them hugged each other tightly.

"We might not live with each other again, but we will always be together. Just close your eyes and think of me, and I will be there. Sandy, I want you to be strong. No matter where you are, no matter who you are with and no matter what you do."

"The same goes for you, Stan. Don't let any more bullies bully you," Sandy said.

"I won't."

Stan thought about everything that is happening now. Just yesterday they were so happy, playing together in the park. Tomorrow, they would be separated forever. Forever? Why does it have to be forever? Couldn't anybody do something about that? Couldn't _he_ do something about that?

"Sandy."

"Y-yeah?"

"I promise."

"Huh?"

"I promise you. Sometime in the future, we will meet again. I do not know how, but even if I have to journey a thousand miles, I will try. I promise, Sandy, and I always keep my promises. Now, let's just make the most of what little time we have left."

Sandy smiled and nodded. They looked at the peaceful sunset once more. It might be the last sunset they will watch together in a while.

-----

At night, Stan and Sandy slept together in their little wooden hamster house. They both know that when they wake up tomorrow, they will not find the other sleeping next to him or her.

_Stan, we had such great times together. Tomorrow, one of us will wake up in a new place with a new master. Life without you will never be the same, but I am not worried. That is because you promised. We shall meet again, one day. Remember, Stan. Remember me. For in the future, we will be together once more. _

_Together forever._

**(END OF FLASHBACK)**

-----------------------------------------

"Acorn Mountain… I love this place," Stan thought to himself. He could stay here for hours if he wanted to, but not today. He had to find Sandy right away and try to erase the thorns he had put in the past.

Just as he was about to exit Acorn Mountain though, he saw a familiar group of five yellow creatures. _No way… how did they find out about this place?_

It was too late for Stan to hide anywhere, as the Chicky-Chickies had seen him. Immediately, they started running towards Stan, who quickly climbed up the closest tree he could reach. He looked down and saw the Chicky-Chickies glaring at him from below. They were persistent and waited under the tree for him to come down.

_How am I going to get to Sandy now?_

----

"He must be in Acorn Mountain… he must be…" Sandy muttered to herself as she ran towards Stan's personal heaven. Acorn Mountain was not too far away now. She then thought about how she was going to find a single hamster in a large area. She could call for him, but what if he refuses to see her? What if Stan was mad at Sandy?

_I would apologize. Then, hopefully he will accept it and this nightmare will finally be over. _

Having made her mind, Sandy continued on her search for Stan.

----

_At the Clubhouse…_

"Boss, you're back!" Hamtaro said as Boss enters the room.

"Where were you? And where's Sandy?" Maxwell asked.

"She went to Acorn Mountain to look for Stan. She said she was sure Stan would be there."

"And you let her go by herself?" Maxwell asked, his voice showing a little sign of anger.

"Yeah, she said she needed to talk to Stan alone."

"But you still should have followed behind or something. What if a Chicky-Chicky attacks her when she's there? Have you no concern for her safety?"

"Look, Maxwell, she specifically asked me to come back here. I'm not going to argue with Sandy, and I definitely am not going to argue with you!"

"You still shouldn't have left her alone like that! I'm going to look for her now!" Maxwell left the Clubhouse in a rush.

"Uh oh, he's mad," Oxnard commented.

"Do you think we should follow him?" Pashmina asked.

"Since Sandy was so sure that Stan would be there, then let's go! I want to see them finally reunited again," Panda said. "Me too," Pashmina replied (with an "Ookyoo!" from Penelope).

The others agreed to head for Acorn Mountain and they all left, leaving behind only Snoozer.

----

_Huh? Where have all the Chicky-Chickies gone? Wait… I hear something…_

"Staaaaan! I know you're here somewhere! Please come out!" a voice called.

_Sandy? No… it's dangerous here!_

Stan saw Sandy walking into Acorn Mountain, her paws cupped around her mouth as she yelled for him. Then, a yellow creature moved behind her without Sandy noticing.

_No!_

Four more yellow creatures came out from the front and surrounded Sandy. Sandy was shocked. She was outnumbered five to one and was totally defenseless. She closed her eyes and waited for the final blow that would do her in. The final blow that never came.

"Here I come!" Stan yelled as he jumped off the branch and landed on a Chicky-Chicky. Sandy opened her eyes. "Stan?"

"Sandy, I want you to run away now! Quick!"

"What about you? I'm not leaving without you!"

"You must and you will!" Stan ordered as he pulled out his maracas. He did not know how he could fight off five chicks with a pair of maracas, but he would try anyway.

By now, the five Chicky-Chickies are glaring at Stan. All of them looked ready to attack at any second now…

"You are not battling alone, Stan. I'm with you," Sandy said bravely.

"Don't be stupid, these aren't playground bullies we're dealing with! These guys could kill!"

"We battled together before, and we succeeded. Why can't the past repeat itself?"

"Because the past is full of flaws, full of my mistakes. I am sorry, Sandy, for being a poor brother. I promise I'll be better from now on, but I can't keep that promise if you don't save yourself now!" cried Stan. The Chicky-Chickies were drawing closer to Stan.

"You can't keep that promise if YOU try fighting the Chicky-Chickies by yourself!" Sandy shot back. But Stan did not hear this for the Chicky-Chickies had made their first move. All five of them had charged at Stan, who simply ducked between two of them. He grabbed Sandy's paw and quickly ran out of Acorn Mountain.

"Fine! We leave together!" Stan yelled.

That was not to be, however, as a Chicky-Chicky charged from behind and crashed into Stan, sending him flying straight into a tree. He bumped his head hard against the trunk.

"There they are! And look! The Chicky-Chickies!" a voice shouted. Sandy looked and saw Maxwell with the rest of the Ham-Hams.

"Guys! Help us!" Sandy called.

"Sandy! We're coming!" Maxwell replied. "Go go go! Beat those chicks before anything happens!" Boss ordered the other Ham-Hams. All of them charged to the battlefield. The second war has begun.

---

Howdy drew one of the Chicky-Chickies' attention. "Hey! Why did the Chicky-Chicky cross the road? To get knocked on the head by Dexter!" Howdy joked. The young chicken looked confused, but Dexter quickly came and knocked it unconscious with a stick.

"Nice one, Dexter!"

"Oh no, I am sure your jokes would have the same effect as my stick, Howdy," Dexter replied.

Meanwhile, Hamtaro, Oxnard, Bijou and Boss were taking on another Chicky-Chicky. All four of them are standing in a square pattern with rocks in their paws. The Chicky-Chicky stood in the middle, surveying its opponents.

"Take that!" Boss threw a stone at it. The chick turned to look at Boss but was hit by another stone by Oxnard. It turned his head towards Oxnard and was hit by Hamtaro. This process repeated until it fainted from giddiness and from being knocked on the head too many times.

Pashmina, Penelope and Cappy were battling against the third Chicky-Chicky. Cappy and Penelope jumped onto the chick's head while Pashmina took off her scarf. She quickly tied it around the Chicky-Chicky's eyes while Penelope and Cappy were distracting it.

When it was perfectly blindfolded, Penelope and Cappy began taking turns jumping on top of the young chicken. This angered the chick, and it began to run around wildly. Penelope and Cappy quickly jumped off the chick and laughed as it ran headfirst into a tree, knocking itself out.

Maxwell and Panda were fighting with the fourth Chicky-Chicky. Maxwell had a huge encyclopedia on his paws while Panda has a hammer. "This should be easy," Panda commented.

Panda dodged a peck and then hit the chick's feet with the hammer. The chick chirped in pain. Maxwell took this opportunity to slam the side of its head with the encyclopedia. That did the job.

As the others were fighting, Sandy was left to fend for herself. She did not bring her ribbon, so she had nothing to fight with. The Chicky-Chicky smiled evilly as it proceeded slowly towards her. Before it could do anything though, a hamster jumped on its back and began choking it with his maracas.

"Stan! You're injured! Don't…"

"I won't let anyone hurt you!" Stan declared. The angry chick shook its own body, trying to get Stan off. It finally succeeded as Stan flew and bumped into a tree, once again. He laid down next to the tree, catching his breath. Sandy saw the Chicky-Chicky begin pawing its feet on the ground like a bull. Then, it charged full-speed towards Stan.

"Stan! Get away!" Sandy warned. But it was too late. Stan was sandwiched between the tree and the chick. All of the Ham-Hams watched in horror as Stan collapsed to the ground, not moving. The Chicky-Chicky was also dazed from the impact. It swayed around, then called for the other Chicky-Chickies to follow him. They all ran off, probably back to Charlotte's ranch.

But Sandy did not care about the Chicky-Chickies. She quickly ran forward to Stan, followed by the other Ham-Hams.

"Stan, are you OK?" Sandy cuddled Stan in her arms.

"I… can't see your face…" his voice was incredibly slurred.

"It's OK, Stan, you'll be fine!" Sandy blinked back some tears. Stan jerked around, clearly in pain.

"I can't feel myself…"

"No, Stan, please… please…" Sandy sobbed.

"Sandy… I am sorry… for all those things I've done…"

"You've done nothing wrong, nothing wrong!" Sandy continued sobbing. The other Ham-Hams just watched helplessly.

"I hope you remember me… and please, bury my maracas when I die, so I can perform… perform for those lovely angels… up in heaven…" Stan murmured softly. His voice became softer and softer now, until Sandy could barely hear him.

"No! You aren't going to die, Stan! You can't! You can't leave me! Not again!"

"Take care…"

"Don't! I won't have you saying that, Stan! Promise me you'll get up again! Open your eyes! Tell me you are not leaving me behind!"

"Some things… I just can't promise…"

"Stan? Stan! Stttaaaaaaaaannnnn!" Sandy cried out. Sandy was left alone again. This time, no promise was made.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**AUTHOR'S NOTES**

Poor Sandy… Poor Stan…

Unfortunately, that scene just had to be done. Well… I can tell you that this isn't the final chapter though; there will be one more which is pretty how life goes on after this incident. There will also be one more flashback, I think you can guess what it is going to be about. (The flashback will be quite short though, I think)

Well… read and review! I would love to hear what you think…

And stay tune for the final chapter in 'A Brother To Me'. (Deleted Scenes will be posted after the final chapter)


	6. Home

A Brother To Me

Here I am again with the final chapter. It has been fun writing this story, and I hope you enjoyed it. By the way, I might have got the flashback a little wrong (or maybe a lot), but just read on anyways.

Thank you for the reviews and please keep them coming!

Disclaimer: I do not own Hamtaro and all the characters in it. However, I do own my song-poem, 'Abstract'.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Chapter Six - Home**

**(FLASHBACK)**

Elder Ham congratulated Sandy on a job well done. She and the other girl-hams had just pulled off a brilliant ribbon-twirling performance. "You know… you actually reminded me of someone. He looks exactly just like you… hmm… what was his name again?"

_Stan! His name is Stan! You mean… he lives somewhere nearby?_

"Hey Sandy, maybe he vould know about your song!" Bijou said. The others urged Sandy to sing it.

Sandy cleared her throat and sang.

"Twirling, whirling, round we go,

Twirling high and twirling low…"

"Aha! That's the song he used to sing! Hmm… I wonder what his name was…" Elder Ham pondered.

_Stan… you are somewhere near where I am… remember your promise, Stan? Please… please keep it…_

---------

_A few days later…_

Sandy thought the other Ham-Hams were acting really weird. They refused to tell her what they were up to exactly, making up excuses that were obviously fake. She knew something weird was going on, but she could not tell for sure. She had her suspicions though…

After being persuaded not to enter the Clubhouse, Sandy pushed her way in anyway. Inside, she saw that the whole place was decorated and the other Ham-Hams stood in the middle, giggling nervously. She surveyed the place.

"Um… what's with all the decoration, guys? Were you planning a party and not invite me?" Sandy said. To her surprise though, the Ham-Hams began to sing her song. It certainly brought back memories of the time when Stan and Sandy lived together. Then, Boss walked to Sandy, holding a rope.

"Here you go, Sandy, a present for you.," Boss offered the rope to Sandy.

"Uh… a rope?"

"Uh no… it's what on the end of the rope!" Boss said.

Sandy looked around at the other Ham-Hams, feeling uncertain. The others all nodded encouragingly, urging her to pull it. Sandy looked up and saw that the rope was attached to a huge ball-thingy.

_Could it be…? Could it be him hiding inside there?_

Sandy gave the rope a huge tug and the ball split open. Tons of confetti fell, and nothing more.

"Wow! It's so pretty! Can I take it all home in a bag?" Sandy said, hiding the disappointment in her voice. She was hoping that Stan would appear and reunite with her once again…

The others looked puzzled. Sandy saw Hamtaro saying something, but she couldn't quite hear what it was. Then, a loud noise came from above. Sandy saw a hamster on a skateboard holding a pair of maracas jump from above and landed next to her with a thud.

"Hey… sis! Long time no see!" the male tiger-striped hamster greeted. Sandy was too shocked and couldn't quite believe what was happening. The male hamster then began to sing the song that was created by him a long time ago…

"Stan… I found you…" with her eyes starting to water; Sandy moved forward and then hugged Stan tightly. "This is like, totally cool!"

The other Ham-Hams cheered. Some were even crying, joyful for the reunited twins.

_Thank you! Thank you! You kept your promise after all! I knew you would! I told you, Stan! I told you that we would meet again! It has been so long… too long… but we will be together from now on. Together till the end of time._

**(END OF FLASHBACK)**

------------------------------------------------------------

Stan was put on one of the beds in the Clubhouse. The others have persuaded Sandy to just leave Stan in Acorn Mountain, but she did not want to. She insisted Stan is not dead. The others gave in to her and left her be.

It was now late at night, and the others have gone back to their homes. After making sure Sandy was all right, Boss went into his room to sleep. Sandy sat next to Stan, crying. How she wished she could just turn back time… how she wished she could have changed fate. She would even sacrifice herself just to get Stan back…

"Stan… please don't die…" Sandy cried and held Stan's paws tightly.

**_(Goodbye_**

**_As I erase myself from your history)_**

"_Stan! What are you doing? Why were you so rude to Maxwell and… Stan! You're hurting me! Let go!" Sandy broke Stan's grip and then glared at him. Stan did not flinch under his sister's glare like he usually did. In fact, he glared right back._

**_(As I save you from my misery)_**

"_You trust Maxwell… but not your own brother? You… how could you! Sandy, you idiot!" Stan yelled._

**_(As the light dims and blink)_**

"_You… you are not my brother, are you? My brother would never speak to me like that! I… I wish I never found you!" Sandy then ran out of the Clubhouse, sobbing._

**_(Farewell)_**

_Stan remained in the Clubhouse, wounded by Sandy's words. He then ran out of the Clubhouse through the other way, leaving behind only a single teardrop on the floor._

**_(As I walk towards yesterday_**

_**The price that I must pay**_

_**To protect the flame of tomorrow**_

**_From anguish, hatred and sorrow)_**

"_Sometimes, a wounded today is because of a bleeding yesterday. Know what I mean?" Jingle said._

"_You mean… she did not believe me because of something that happened in the past?" Stan was confused._

**_(As I fade away,_**

**_It's the price I pay)_**

_Memories of all the fights and arguments between Stan and his sister ran through Stan's mind. Usually it was he who started them. But why? Was it because he was just teasing Sandy? Was it because he was bored and wanted to start a fight just for the fun of it? Or… was it as Sandy said? Was he really jealous because nobody seemed to really like him?_

**_(Deeds today changes tomorrow_**

**_But there will still be no time to borrow)_**

'_Yeah. I have hurt Sandy in the past without knowing and without meaning it. That is the sad truth. But is this the end for both of us? Do we still have a future? Is it too late to untie the knots I made?' Stan thought to himself._

**_(As any injury that lies in the past,_**

_**They will be there to last**_

**_As I fade away, for it's the price I pay)_**

"_They say that all wounds heal through time, but sometimes, you just need to speed it up. Unless you make your move, things will remain as it is," Jingle advised._

**_(Fly away_**

_**I wish I could sometimes**_

_**But I know it's only a dream**_

**_No matter how hard I tried)_**

"_You told me… in your sleep. The woods in the park near the playground… this is it."_

**_(Fade away_**

**_I wish I would sometimes)_**

**_But I know that my scars are here to stay)_**

"_Well, I love you, I love Hillary, I love our world and I love me," Stan declared._

_Sandy laughed. "But you still have all of them! And you always will."_

**_(The wind carries my pleas far and spread it throughout the lands)_**

"_Stan, Sandy… starting tomorrow, you won't be living together anymore," Hillary announced._

**_(I was there hanging for dear life but I couldn't just reach your hands)_**

"_It is hard to believe that this is the last one we'll see together."_

"_Don't say 'last', Stan."_

"_But it's the truth. One of us will be put in a new home with a new master. We will never see each other again."_

**_(And the sea brings my tears down to the ocean of sorrow)_**

"_We will never see each other again…"_

**_(As the bleeding past grows to a wounded tomorrow)_**

"_I promise you. Sometime in the future, we will meet again. I do not know how, but even if I have to journey a thousand miles, I will try. I promise, Sandy, and I always keep my promises."_

**_(As nature shouts and scream while I cry with agony)_**

"_I won't let anyone hurt you!" Stan declared. The angry chick shook its own body, trying to get Stan off. It finally succeeded as Stan flew and bumped into a tree, once again. He laid down next to the tree, catching his breath. Sandy saw the Chicky-Chicky begin pawing its feet on the ground like a bull. Then, it charged full-speed towards Stan._

**_(And I shall die in my peaceful sanctuary)_**

"_Don't! I won't have you saying that, Stan! Promise me you'll get up again! Open your eyes! Tell me you are not leaving me behind!"_

"_Some things… I just can't promise…"_

"_Stan? Stan! Stttaaaaaaaaannnnn!"_

**_(Can you rescue me?)_**

"Sandy…"

**_(I know you care…)_**

"Open your eyes…"

_**(Don't let me fade away)**_

"Sandy… it's me," a soft voice whispered.

"Stan… what I wouldn't give to have you here again… with me…" Sandy murmured in her sleep.

-----

Sandy could hear a lot of noise coming from the lower section of the Clubhouse. It must have been morning already, and all the Ham-Hams must have arrived at the Clubhouse.

She knew she should get up now and go greet them, but she was in no mood. Yesterday's incident had took a lot out of her. She still would not accept that Stan is dead. She turned around in her bed and pulled the blanket closer to her neck.

Wait a minute… her bed? What the…

Sandy got up immediately and looked around. She was in the Clubhouse, true. But she did not remember climbing onto a bed before dozing off. Oh well… it must have been Boss who carried her up.

Wait… the beds next to her were all empty… it couldn't be…

Sandy got up and walked down in a hurry.

"Boss! Did you just move Stan's body from the bed?" she demanded. All the Ham-Hams were crowded around the table, chatting excitedly. They all turned to look at Sandy.

"Sandy, listen…" Boss began.

"Why did you move his body? I told you I…"

"Sandy," a voice called from behind. Sandy heard the voice, but was too busy scolding Boss to bother about it.

"Sandy!" the voice came louder.

"Be quiet, Stan! Now Boss, what did I… wait… Stan?" Sandy turned around to see her brother. He wasn't lifeless at all; he was standing in front of her, smiling.

"STAN!" Sandy lunged at Stan and hugged him so hard that they both fell on the floor. "You… you cruel, you!" Sandy yelled. "You made me so worried…" she sobbed.

"That shows how bad a brother I am, right?" Stan chuckled. "I have been an idiot in the past…"

"No you weren't, Stan. I should have believed you when you warned me about Maxwell… but he was actually only playing a trick on us-"

"He WHAT!"

"I'm sorry, Stan, but it was true. I had installed a Ham-Cam in the bushes outside when Bijou and I pretended to confess our love to each other. I installed a Ham-Cam in the Clubhouse too, and that was when you came in and well… you know what happened after that," Maxwell offered his paw. "Do you accept my apology?"

Stan shook it, and said, "You do know that I will chase you down if you really break my sister's heart, right?"

"Uh… yeah…," Maxwell laughed nervously.

----

Stan and Sandy were sitting on the same tree branch that they sat on the day before Stan was given to Noel. They were also watching the same sunset that was always here for years now.

"So… Stan… I owe you an apology."

"What for?"

"For not trusting you more and for being rude to you."

"Nah, that was nothing. In fact, Jingle made me realize that what happened in the present might be because of something that happened in the past. Speaking of the past, do you forgive me for being an idiot?"

Sandy laughed. "You're not an idiot; you're my brother."

They both laughed. Stan stared at the sun again. He thought it was lucky that he could live to see another sunset.

"You know, I was very scared," Stan said.

"Scared?"

"Yeah. I was in a huge white tunnel; it was so bright and I could not see anything. I called for the other Ham-Hams. I called for you. But nothing. Just white. And all the while I was falling… falling into nothingness."

"Was that the time after you got hit by the Chick-Chickies?"

"Yep. And then, I thought I heard someone call my name. The voice was so soft and like, I couldn't tell who it was, you know? Then I saw that below me was a huge black hole… it sucked all the light inside. Everything was fading. And I was about to fall inside the hole."

Sandy remained silent. She was intrigued by Stan's story.

"I felt totally empty, emotionless. I was ready to be sucked into the hole and fade away, but I heard the voice again. 'Stan,' it said. Sandy, I realized it was you."

Tears were running down Sandy's cheek again. She did not look at Stan, but continued listening to his story.

"Then, I remembered all that has happened to me… I remembered our stupid argument. I remembered our past. I remembered when I was slammed by that Chicky-Chicky. I remembered it all. You reminded me, Sandy."

"Stop, Stan… please…" Sandy couldn't bear to hear Stan's near-death experience. She couldn't bear to hear how Stan had suffered like that.

"No, Sandy. I'm not going to stop. I was probably a few inches away from the hole, but then I saw you. I saw you just lying down there… next to me… and I reached out. And you pulled me out. Yes, you saved me, Sandy. You cared, and you never gave up. Thanks to you, I did not become a thing of the past. Thanks to you, I am past, present and future."

Sandy continued to sob. "You have suffered so much… so much because of me…"

"No. I have caused much trouble in the past. In fact, if not for Maxwell's prank, I would have continued to create havoc, ultimately destroying our future. Thanks to Maxwell, you and Jingle, I realized how important it is to not damage the past or present. Now, the wounds of yesterday have healed. Sandy, you and I will have a brighter future."

"Together?"

"Yes. Together forever. This I promise you."

**THE END**

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**AUTHOR'S NOTES**

Ta-dah!

I have completed it… finally! And just in time too, for my mid-year exams is about a week away, so I won't be as active the next few weeks.

It will take some time for me to compile the deleted scenes (there won't be too many of them, I'm lazy) but let me tell you this: they are deleted scenes because they are not too good. So, don't expect too much out of them. They are more like a 'The Making Of A Brother To Me' chapter.

Do note that all of the above has been planned right from the beginning!

I thank you all for reading my story. I thank all who favourited it, as well as those who reviewed! Thank you! Arigato Gozaimasu (did I spell that right?)!

**A Brother To Me - Completed**


	7. Deleted Scenes

A Brother To Me Deleted Scenes

Disclaimer : I do not own Hamtaro and all the characters in it.

Thank you for reading my story! This is a bonus chapter that contains scenes which I originally planned to use in this story, but was deleted altogether or replaced with better ones. In other words, this is kinda like a 'The Making of A Brother To Me'. I have also included reasons for deletion/replacement. Also note that since these are deleted scenes, **they are not as good as the ones in the real story** (at least, in my opinion anyway).

Also note, **most of these scenes never happened, unless mentioned otherwise. **

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

**SCENE ONE - Maxwell and Bijou's Secret**

Takes place in Chapter One, the scene when Stan overhears Maxwell's and Bijou's conversation.

It starts out with Stan running late…:

"Oh no… Boss mentioned specifically that we are all going to discuss about the festival today… and I'm late!" Stan thought to himself as he ran towards the Clubhouse. He had heard Sandy tell of the time when Hamtaro was late once, and he got the role of props-boy. Stan couldn't imagine himself doing nothing but helping with the props. After all, he was born to be in the spotlight, where all the lovely ladies could see him.

Just as he opened the door to the Clubhouse, Boss and the other hamsters walked out. Boss bumped right into Stan and they both fell.

"Hey Bossman! Discussion over?" Stan asked.

"Oh… uh… Stan! Where were you! You are late!"

"I kinda got sidetracked on the way. So, what part did I get? The leading role?"

"Oh yeah, you got a leading role all right. You are the leader of the props."

"Noooo! That's not fair!"

"Serves you right for being late! Now, we are going outside to look for props, but Maxwell and Bijou will be staying inside the Clubhouse, working on the script. You help them out, OK?" Boss said and left with the other Ham-Hams.

"Cheer up, Stan, there's always next year!" Hamtaro said cheerfully.

"Easy for you to say," Stan mumbled and walked into the Clubhouse. Inside, he saw Maxwell and Bijou at the highest point of the Clubhouse. Surprisingly, they were holding paws. Stan hid on the stairs below and listened carefully.

"Bijou… I have something to confess."

"Uh… OK then, but if eet eez all right with you, please don't hold my paws so tightly."

Maxwell did not seem to hear what Bijou said as he continued talking. "The first time I saw you, I thought you were just an ordinary girl. But then, as time flies by and I get to know you more, I realize… I realize that…"

"Hm? What did you realize, Maxwell?"

"I… I love you."

"Oh… Maxwell… I didn't know… I never knew…"

"I only hope you feel the same way…"

"Yes, Maxwell! I do! I always have! Oh, this is a dream come true…"

"Really? You feel the same way? That's great! I always thought that it was Hamtaro you loved, and not anyone else."

At this, Bijou blushed. Stan was feeling shocked and confused. Maxwell… and Bijou? He knew then that he had to find Sandy. When Stan had run out of the Clubhouse, Maxwell congratulated Bijou.

"Excellent, Bijou! I knew you could do it! You just need to focus on your emotions, and you will do great during the play!"

**This scene was REPLACED.**

Overall, I thought this scene was awkward and dull. It moves on too fast, cutting straight to the chase like that. Therefore, it was replaced with a slower scene which builds up to the part where Stan overhears Bijou and Maxwell.

-------------------------------

**SCENE TWO - Posters**

This takes place in Chapter Three, when the group were discussing about Stan who had just ran away.

"There. I have made posters about Stan. Anyone who sees it will then know to notify us if they spotted Stan somewhere," Maxwell said while putting a huge stack of posters on the table.

"Cool! These are like the ones you used when I was missing last time!" Hamtaro said.

"Yeah, the only real difference is that they have a picture of Stan."

"Maybe you should put a warning on the poster saying 'Beware, Extremely Flirtatious'," Howdy commented before laughing.

"Seriously, Howdy, you can joke in any situation," Dexter said.

"I'll take that as a compliment, thank you."

"Well now, let's stop doing the talking and start the walking, shall we?" Boss said.

"Right. The sooner we start, the better. Sandy, are you sure you're OK?" Maxwell asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Let's just put these up quickly and maybe we'll find him."

Everyone begin taking the posters and set off to put them up. Sandy took a huge pile, anxious to put them all up where other hamsters could see them. Howdy and Dexter both reached for the same pile, and when neither would let the other take the pile, they began arguing. They soon stopped when they noticed that Panda and Pashmina had reached for the same pile as well.

Panda's paw landed on top of Pashmina's.

"Oh, sorry, Pashmina. Didn't see you there," Panda said.

"No no no, I should have looked to see there's no one before reaching for this pile. You can have it."

"OK then, I'll take the top pile and you take the bottom one."

"OK!"

Howdy and Dexter glared angrily at Panda and Pashmina. "Is it just me or are they both too close for comfort?" Dexter asked.

"We might have another competitor for Pashmina if we aren't careful," Howdy agreed.

_Meanwhile…_

Sandy was putting up posters with a hamster watching her. The hamster looked puzzled, and Sandy later found out why.

"Excuse me, why are you putting up missing posters of yourself? Are you lost or something?" the hamster asked.

"Oh, no! This is my twin brother! He's not me!"

**This scene was DELETED.**

It all seemed fine, but then I realized something. In the show, Howdy saw Hamtaro being taken away by the truck; that was how he knew Hamtaro was missing. In this story, Stan ran away. He wasn't really lost. So, the whole idea was scraped. Not to mention the scene seemed a little weird.

There's also a Pashmina/Panda hint here…

---------------------------------------------------

**SCENE THREE - Enter Spat**

Takes place after Stan runs away and before he meets Jingle.

Stan walked down the dirt path without really looking where he was going.

_BUMP!_

A white and black hamster wearing a costume bumped into Stan and they both fell.

"What the heck are you doing, walking around without opening your eyes, pthptth!" the hamster bellowed.

"Sorry…" Stan muttered. He looked at the hamster and noticed the costume made him look like a devil. "What's with your costume?"

"It doesn't need to be Halloween for a costume, pthptth! It's hamsters like you who make me look like a freak just because I have a costume! Where's your fashion sense? By the way, you look down. Got ditched by your girl-Ham?"

"Not really… no…"

"Well, tell me your problem then! Maybe I can help, pthptth!" the stranger said. _Yeah, I can help make it worse! Hahahaha!_ he thought.

"Well…" Stan told the stranger about his problem with Sandy. The stranger listened with interest while wearing a fake sympathetic expression.

"Well, I just might have the thing that can help you! You see, this is a rare mirror. It shows you your soul. If your soul is pure and you are liked by hamsters everywhere, then it will show you as you were. If you are bad and nobody likes you, then it will show something very scary, pthptth!"

"But what has this got to do with my problem?"

"Well, your sister fought with you, didn't she? But why? Was it just because she hated you and wanted a reason to argue? Now's your chance to find out! Take a look…" the stranger gave Stan the mirror. It looked quite ordinary to Stan.

Stan hesitated, but then couldn't resist and held the mirror up. He was shocked; a hamster with horns and a wrinkled face looked back at him. That was not all, his reflection has large, yellow fangs and dull, gray eyes. Stan could stand no more. He threw the mirror to the ground and ran away.

_Hahahaha! What a fool. He didn't know that this is a trick mirror I bought at the black market the other day. Well, that was just the start of my break-love-everywhere plan. Watch out world, here comes Spat!_

**This scene was DELETED.**

This was kinda like the opposite of the Jingle scene. I liked this one, and I really wanted to include something like this in the real story. However, I had a big problem. The timeline.

Personally, I want 'A Brother To Me' to not have a specific timeline. It could happen anytime you want; whether it is after season one or two or something else. If I use this scene, then there would be a specific timeline, which is before 'Ham-Ham Heartbreak'.

---------------------------------------

**SCENE FOUR - Stan's near-death experience first-hand (through his eyes)**

Takes place in the final chapter

White.

Everything was white.

Or was it? Could he really see? Was his eyes even open? He never knew. And he did not care. All he knew was that he was just floating… without any emotions, without any care.

A dark black vortex suddenly appeared under him, apparently sucking everything inside. He knew he should have been afraid, but he remained calm. After all, it wasn't all white now… at least there is a little bit of black in where he was…

_Stan…_

Stan? Who's that? It sounds familiar… where have he heard this name before?

_Please don't die…_

Die? Is Stan about to die? Well… it doesn't concern him anyway. He does not know who this 'Stan' is. And yet… it seems to ring a bell…

_Stan…_

There. The voice again. Why can't it just leave him alone? It was only him, the white area and the black vortex. Nothing else belongs there. Just let the vortex suck him in already. The voice was hurting him deep inside for some reason.

_Do not leave me alone…_

'Go away!' he thought. 'Leave me alone!'

_Do not leave me…_

Me…? Who is me? San…. dy? Sandy? Who is Sandy? Stan and Sandy… two names… so familiar… no… why? Why can't he just vanish in peace? Why must this voice come and torment him… force-feeding him with bitter memories? Bitter memories that he do not remember?

But he does remember. At least, a part of it. Stan and Sandy… two siblings; torn apart. A brother who has made plenty of mistakes and a sister who just could not understand him. Is that it? Is that who Stan and Sandy were?

He needs to know. But how? He looked behind and saw that he was very close to the black hole. He didn't want to get sucked into it now. At least, not until he finally know who Stan and Sandy was.

It was then he saw a small glimmer in front of him; an orange dot that seems to be dancing in circles. It seemed to form a hole, and through it was a blurry image…

The image was of a small hamster with tiger-stripes on the side and middle of the head. 'Stan', he thought. This was Stan. What about Sandy?

The image seems to get clearer a little, revealing another identical hamster next to the previous one. Sandy. This second hamster was Sandy. What were they doing? They seemed to be shouting… he couldn't quite hear them clearly…

"_I wish I never found you!"_ _the one called Sandy yelled._

She wished she had never found Stan? Why? What did Stan do? Why was Stan running away? Why was Stan crying?

"_You mean… she did not believe me because of something that happened in the past?"_ _Stan was asking another hamster with a guitar._

The past? What happened in the past? Why did the past cause the two to have an argument?

"_I won't let anyone hurt you!" Stan declared. The angry chick shook its own body, trying to get Stan off._

No one… shall hurt Sandy…

"_Don't! I won't have you saying that, Stan! Promise me you'll get up again! Open your eyes! Tell me you are not leaving me behind!"_

"_Some things… I just can't promise…"_

No promises… Stan will fade away and Sandy will be left alone. It has to be this way. It's not Stan's fault. It wasn't Sandy's either. No one was to be blamed.

"_Stan? Stan! Stttaaaaaaaaannnnn!"_

Stan… that is me. I am Stan. Why are you calling for me? I have been bad. Just let me fade away… you will be happier without me…

Then Stan saw another image. It was Sandy, sitting next to a motionless Stan.

She might be sleeping, but tears were running down her cheeks. Why? Was I worth all these tears? Was I that important? Do I even play a role in your life?

It was then that Stan truly realized what is going on. He was in total whiteness with a black vortex sucking him in. Unlike before, he now wants to continue living. He wants to be with Sandy once more. He tried to swim desperately away from the vortex, but to no avail.

As a last resort, he reached out to the image of Sandy, hoping for the impossible.

"Sandy…" he pleaded softly. "I know you care…"

He then felt a paw holding onto his.

**This scene has been ALTERED.**

If this was the scene in Chapter 6, that means I would have to get rid of the songfic and also the ending or it would be redundant. So, I just made Stan tell Sandy about what happened to him at the end of Chapter 6. It's basically the same as this.

-----------------------------

**SCENE FIVE** - **During the Summer Festival**

Think of this as an epilogue that happens after the last chapter.

It was time for Elder-Ham's Summer Festival. A few days ago, Stan might have been worried about what he's going to perform, but today, he was just glad he is still alive. So was Sandy.

There were a few rows of bleachers for the audience to sit on. Stan sat on the front row, where he could witness the performances up-close. Sandy sat next to him since it wasn't her turn to perform yet. The first to perform was Howdy and Dexter. All of the Ham-Hams were wondering what they were going to do, since they have been so secretive about it.

It turned out that their performance was a song about Pashmina. No one could say it was a good performance; a lot of hamsters in the audience were trying their hardest not to burst out laughing. Pashmina just hid her head in her pink scarf.

Stan chuckled. "I am glad they did not ask me to sing with them."

"You might have made the song better, though," Sandy replied.

"You're only trying to cheer me up. Singing really isn't my forte."

"At least Howdy and Dexter tried though. Look at Pashmina," Sandy said. Stan and Sandy turned to Pashmina, who was also sitting at the front row. Though her scarf covered her face, there were visible patches of red all over her cheeks. Penelope was giggling non-stop next to her. Elder-Ham, on the other paw, was sleeping.

Up next were the boys with their play. It was something about 'the three hamketeers' or something, Stan wasn't really paying attention. It was quite long, but it only received lukewarm applause. After that, Sandy got up and told Stan it was the girls' turn to perform.

Stan cheered Sandy on as she and the other girls did their ribbon-twirling-gymnastics thingy that they were famous of. The crowd quite liked it, and so did Stan. Howdy and Dexter were cheering Pashmina on non-stop. On Stan's right, Maxwell was busy arranging some papers in his paw. He also had a video tape next to him. Stan wondered what Maxwell was going to do, since he really only had one successful prank in his tape.

To close the show, Maxwell did the last performance. Sandy had got back to the bleachers and sat next to Stan again. All the other Ham-Hams occupied the front row, with only Maxwell standing on the stage.

"Ahem… I am Maxwell. I originally planned to do something like a trick-show thing, where I play pranks on hamsters and then show it to you all. However, I only succeeded in capturing one prank. Here, watch," Maxwell said as he put his tape into a player. Bijou turned very red and kept glancing over at Hamtaro. Stan laughed as Bijou tried to borrow Pashmina's scarf to bury her face in.

"_How cruel! My jewelry! Who could have done such a thing?" Bijou cried out. She looked at the note. "So many zeroes! However can I find that many sunflower seeds! Hamtaroooooo! Where are you! Come and help me!"_

A lot of the audience laughed. Bijou had her head in Pashmina's scarf, though Stan saw her stealing a glance at Hamtaro. Hamtaro was puzzled on why Bijou screamed for him like that in the video. Boss, however, was looking a little furious and sad.

"That prank may be successful, but my next prank caused a whole lot of chaos. I have caught a part of it… here… watch this," Maxwell said and inserted the tape inside the player once more. The television showed the scene which happened a few days ago…

"_You stay out of this, Maxwell, I'm going to put my brother in his place!" Sandy said._

"_But," Maxwell began before Stan interrupted once more._

"_Oh yeah? How can you put me in my place, when you don't even know where you stand!" Stan retorted._

_Tears began welling in Sandy's eyes._

"_You… you are not my brother, are you? My brother would never speak to me like that! I… sob I wish I never found you!" Sandy then ran out of the Clubhouse, sobbing. All the other girls chased her except Bijou, who glanced at Stan nervously. Maxwell seemed unsure of what to do. He then chased after Sandy before being followed by Bijou and the others._

"_Sandy, wait! It was all a misunderstanding…!" Maxwell yelled._

"As you can see, it was a total disaster. I never meant for it to happen this way, and I apologize to Stan and Sandy, who are sitting right in front of me; at the front row."

All eyes fell on the twins. No one was laughing now, although they were curious about what happened next. Even Elder-Ham was wide-awake, eager to learn about what happened.

Maxwell got his paper out and began to read. "After that incident, Stan ran away from the Clubhouse while me and the others chased after Sandy to explain what happened. Then, we discovered that the Chicky-Chickies were on the loose again. However, when we got back to the Clubhouse, Stan was not there."

"We tried searching for Stan, but we did not know where he went. I later discovered from Stan himself that he had met Jingle, the poetic hamster. It was Jingle who made Stan realize about the importance of taking care of the past, present and future."

"Stan was then dropped off on Acorn Mountain while Sandy was heading there, since she had a strong feeling that Stan was there. In Acorn Mountain, Sandy got into a bit of trouble with the Chicky-Chickies. Stan made the save though, and was joined shortly by the rest of the Ham-Hams."

"We put up a good fight, but Stan was brutally injured by a Chicky-Chicky while trying to save Sandy. We thought Stan was gone, but a miracle happened, and Stan is still with us. Once again, I would like to apologize to you both, especially to you, Stan, for putting your life in danger like that. Do you forgive me?" Maxwell asked the twins.

Stan looked at Sandy, who looked at him back. Together, they nodded to Maxwell. The audience erupted with cheers and claps, drowning out Maxwell's words of thanks.

"But it is as I said. If not for Maxwell, I would continue hurting you, Sandy. Now, I will try to change my ways, be who you want me to be," Stan told Sandy.

"No, Stan. I want you to be you, as you are already. Don't change. You're my brother, and you have been a real brother to me."

**This scene was DELETED.**

I thought it was anti-climatic. I prefer the ending I used in Chapter Six. However, this scene really happened, though it was not mentioned in the real story. After all, it is an epilogue. I've read lots of stories, and most of them felt better without the epilogue; although not as complete.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**AUTHOR'S NOTES**

Once again, I thank all of you for reading! It has been fun.

I shall now move on to The Hamazing Race… which really has nothing to do with this story.

_**FINISH**_


End file.
